Whistleblower vows justice for Bega victims

The woman responsible for exposing banned Bega doctor Graeme Reeves says she will continue fighting to get justice for his victims.

Health Minister Reba Meagher yesterday released an interim report of an inquiry into the state’s hospital system.

It found Graeme Reeves lied and cheated his way into a position at the former Southern Area Health Service. He had previously been banned from working as an obstetrician.

It is alleged Mr Reeves abused scores of women, mutilating or molesting them at hospitals in Sydney, Pambula and Bega.

The interim report recommended the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) be asked to consider charging Mr Reeves, but made no finding against the three people involved in his recruitment.

Commissioner Peter Garling QC found there was no clear and comprehensive policy followed by the Health Department and Area Health Service regarding the employment of visiting medical officers.

Carolyn Dewaegeneire, one of the first patients to speak out against Mr Reeves, says the battle has only just begun.

“The ACCC, the AMA and all the other professionals at the top of the ladder knew about him years ago,” she said.

“I will continue fighting. All those women who came forward with their trauma and tragedies, I will go forward to get justice.”

‘Let down’

Lorraine Long from the Medical Error Action Group says she is glad the DPP will now be looking at laying charges against Graeme Reeves.

But she too says his victims will feel let down that there is no action planned against people in the health system.

“I think that they will be appalled and very, very disappointed because you just can’t blame one person for this,” she said.

“The doctors in the Bega Valley knew about Reeves as well, and what about the area health service? What about the chief executive of the hospital? What’s going to happen to them?”

Bega MP Andrew Constance says Mr Reeves’ former patients have been left short changed.

He says there has been no justice for the women.

“There’s no grief counselling been forthcoming. There’s no accountability forthcoming,” he said.

“I guess the best thing is the fact that we now have a referral through to the DPP. A referral, I might add, which should of happened in 2004 by the State Government when Reeves was struck off by the medical tribunal.”

An international study has established a link between type 2 diabetes and advanced breast cancer.

It has been known for a while that being overweight puts post-menopausal women at greater risk of breast cancer.

But now it has been found that women who are resistant to insulin, or who are overweight, are 50 per cent more likely to be diagnosed with the cancer, and only when it is in its advanced stages.

The finding comes after an international research team followed more than 60,000 Swedish women over 20 years.

Dr Anne Cust from the University of Melbourne is a collaborator in the study and will present the findings at a medical conference in Brisbane today.

Dr Cust told AM the study looked at the stage of breast cancer and the diagnosis.

“We found that women who were overweight or with insulin resistance were more likely to be diagnosed with an advanced stage of breast cancer,” she said.

“We don’t know the exact reasons why that might be. It might be that the cancer is growing more quickly or that it wasn’t diagnosed early but we need to do more research to find out exactly why that might be.”

She says there are a number of hypotheses as to why overweight or diabetic women aren’t diagnosed earlier with breast cancer.

“It may be that the hormones that are involved, that are linked with being overweight or having insulin resistance, might be making the tumour grow more quickly but we need to do more research to find out exactly why that might be the case,” she said.

But Dr Cust says that does not necessarily mean that women who are at risk of type 2 diabetes should be screened for breast cancer more often.

“The question of screening is something that would need to be looked at separately but I think it is just providing another indication that being overweight is linked to lots of different health problems and this is another reason to get off the couch and try to stay active and maintain a healthy weight,” she said.

“And also, the link with insulin resistance may provide a new avenue of research for looking at the causes of breast cancer and possibly new treatments.”

A new Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report has found older people are spending longer in aged care facilities and need a higher level of attention, partly because so many of them have dementia.

Govt pledges $50m to mental health

Ms Roxon has also unveiled the make-up of a new national advisory group on mental health, to be led by former head of the Mental Health Council, John Mendoza.

Ms Roxon says the new council fulfils an election commitment.

“The advisory council is a mechanism to provide the Government with independent, balanced and confidential advice from a wide range of experts to inform national mental health reform efforts, and provide continuing impetus for reform,” she said.